Question

A person struggles very hard to lift a large boulder. He puts in so much effort, he starts to sweat, his heart rate increases, and he gets really tired. All of his effort is for nothing, the boulder does not move at all. In this situation, has work been done? Explain!

*Use the scientific definition of "work" to answer this question.

Answer 1

No, he did not perform any work. Work is when you’re using energy which results in a force. Even though he was tired and sweaty, he did not move the boulder. So therefore he did not perform any work.